As the strict young-earth creationists at Answers in Genesis work to complete their Ark Encounter "theme park," they have expended an impressive amount of energy organizing the millions of species of land animals alive today into a handful of small groups they call "baramins." Creationists insist that while adaptation or speciation within a particular "baramin" is observable (and, indeed, necessary in order to account for the present observed diversity of life), there is never any overlap between separate kinds. Unfortunately for the young-earth model, the push to minimize the number of animals riding on the Ark has exposed a major problem with this view.
NH Notes: John Ray on the Purpose of Creation in “The Wisdom of God”
The Englishman and natural historian John Ray is best known for his book, The Wisdom of God. Like many other books of the 18th century, he continually revised and reissued his book until the time of his death. Even after his death notes that he had made on manuscripts were incorporated into later editions. As a result of... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Tardigrades – Animals that are Part Bacteria, Plant and Fungus
A new champion in the crazy genome sweepstakes has been crowned. And it is a tardigrade. A tardiwhat? A tardigrade, or better known as those lovable little “water bears” or “moss piglets.” These tiny (<1mm) animals have always held the fascination of biologists not just because they are so darn cute and photogenic but because they are quite... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Fossilized Animal Burrows in Argentina from the Triassic Period
Fossilized bones of dinosaurs, whales and mammoths get all of the attention but trace fossils provide important evidence for interpreting when and how organisms lived on Earth in the past. Trace fossils are not the fossilized remains of organisms themselves but rather are evidence of the past presence of organisms. The most recognizable trace fossils... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: A Four-legged Snake – Has the Edenic Serpent been Found?
An exquisitely preserved fossil snake has made its debut on the internet the last couple of days and it's getting a lot of attention. Why? Because it has four well-developed legs. No snake fossil has ever been found with four legs. There are a few with two hind legs but none with front legs. The... Continue Reading →
The Diversity of Life: An Introductory Lecture
Have you even wondered what students at a public university are taught in a general education biology class about the diversity of life? I can't promise that what I am going to share is typical but it is what over 100 students heard yesterday in my class. Below I share a link to a recording (voice/PPT... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: An Ancient Jawbone Found By Fishermen off the Coast of Taiwan
From a net pulled out of the ocean doesn't seem a likely place to find an ancient human fossil. But by scraping the bottom of the ocean,Taiwanese fishermen have been pulling up all sorts of unusual items in addition to their targeted prey. Like some trawlers off the cost of Great Britain these fishermen have... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Every Breaking Wave – Concretions Resist the Sands of Time
"Every breaking wave on the shore Tells the next one there'll be one more" Bono and Edge, U2 "Every Breaking Wave" 2014 I was in San Diego a few weeks ago attending the Evangelical Theological Society conference. I will report on that later but today I bring you a few pictures I took before hopping... Continue Reading →
Origin of a New Parasite? Tasmanian Devil Transmissible Tumors
Can cancer become an infectious disease? Usually with think of cancer as limited to the individual in whom the cancer formed. But what if cancerous cells could infect other individuals. Here is a link to a story on the sad case of what happens when cancer "learns" to infect more than one individual: BBC News... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Fossilization Caught in the Act – A Mammoth from Texas
Does fossilization require rapid burial as the result of catastrophic global flooding? Literalist creationists would have us believe so for they point to the fossil record as being proof of a cataclysmic global flood. Look a bit deeper though and you will find that creationists frequently concede there are thousands of exceptions to this general... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Natural Trap Cave – An Ice Age Fauna Snapshot
A 15-foot-wide metal grate covers a hole in a bare rock outcrop in the high desert of the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming. Beneath the grate lies a 80 foot vertical drop to into a cavern with no other exit. At the base of cavern situated below the hole in the ceiling are up to 30... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Bent Rock on Display – The Sideling Hill Road Cut
The road cut through Sideling Hill in Maryland on I-68 is one of the best displays of roadside geology east of the Mississippi River. Having spent considerable time in the western US it doesn't seem that impressive to me but since I've been deprived of seeing geological strata for the past year I took a... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Discovery of a Marine Reptile Fossil Trackway
Following up on a new Ichythosaur discovery last week (When Marine Reptiles Ruled the Sea) the fossilized footsteps of a Nothosaur have been unveiled. This time we go to China where a geological surveyor stumbled onto a few fossil tracks on a small ledge. Cutting back into the side of the mountain, paleontologists exposed 350 prints as part of... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Biggest Dinosaur Ever Found But Is It The Largest Animal?
What is the largest animal to have ever lived on the Earth? Most people will answer “dinosaurs” or “sauropods” in particular. While some titanosaurs may have been the heaviest land animals they were not the largest animals to have lived on Earth. That distinction goes to an animal that is very much alive today: the... Continue Reading →
NH Notes: Underwater Cave Yields Fossilized Teenager From the Ice Age
During the last ice age some 12 to 13 thousands years ago a young girl found herself wandering in caves of the Yucatan Peninsula likely looking for water. Hundreds of feet into a cave something happened and she fell in a deep pit breaking her pelvis. With no escape 100 feet down she died a lonely death. She... Continue Reading →